Endocrine Abstracts

Background: Endothelial damage is one of the early signs of cardiovascular disorders. Assessing endothelial function in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) has shown evidence of cardiovascular disease in the absence of clinically evident disorder. Flow mediated dilation (FMD) and reactive hyperaemia peripheral arterial tonometry (RH-PAT) are the frequently used non-invasive techniques for assessing endothelial function. Both the techniques have been used to assess endo...

: In patients with subclinical hypothyroidism, soy protein and isoflavone combination has been shown to increase the risk of developing overt hypothyroidism; however, it is unclear if soy affects thyroid function in those without existing thyroid compromise.Materials and methods: Two double blind randomised trials were undertaken in which thyroid function was performed routinely at the beginning and end as a secondary end point. In both trials soy protei...

Context: Soy phytoestrogens are suggested to have an adverse effect on thyroid function but the contribution to this by soy protein alone when free from isoflavones is unknown.Objective: The primary aim was to determine the effect of isoflavone free soy protein supplementation on thyroid function, with a secondary aim of assessing the effects on cardiovascular risk indices in patients with subclinical hypothyroidism.Design and sett...

Introduction: Microparticles (MPs) are membrane sheds formed during cell activation or apoptosis and are characteristic to the cell of origin. Microparticles are thought to have procoagulant activity and a potential role in the inflammatory process. They have also been identified as potential cardiovascular risk factor markers. Microparticles are found to be elevated in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Annexin-V is a general apoptosis marker that binds to phospha...

Background: PCOS is associated with a clustering of cardiovascular risk factors. Increased serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) are thought to be proatherogenic, and have also been found to be elevated in PCOS. This study was undertaken to determine the changes of VEGF in patients with PCOS after rimonabant and/or metformin intervention.Methods: A 6-month randomised open labelled parallel study of rimonabant or metformin in 20 patien...

Background: The use of radioactive iodine treatment (RAI) for the definitive treatment of benign hyperthyroid disorders has been well established. This study was conducted to determine the factors predicting the development of hypothyroidism following RAI therapy.Methods: All patients (n=104, 25 men, 79 women) who had RAI for hyperthyroidism between January 2008 and December 2009 were included. In 82.6% of patients antithyroid medications were u...

Introduction: Normocalcemic hyperparathyroidism is a less recognised variation of primary hyperparathyroidism (pHPT). Patients present with normal calcium and elevated level of PTH.Case: A 70 years old woman presented to her general practitioner with left sided loin pain. She had no past medical history of note and she was not taking any medications. Ultrasound of the urinary tract showed bilateral nephrocalcinosis. Her blood tests showed raised PTH leve...

Introduction: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) has shown to be associated with increased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines. This study was undertaken to determine the changes of pro-inflammatory cytokines in patients with PCOS after rimonabant and/or metformin treatment.Methods: A 3 month randomised open labelled parallel study of rimonabant or metformin in 20 patients with PCOS with a body mass index >30 kg/m2 was undertaken. Subsequen...

Introduction: Impaired glucose regulation (IGR) is usually defined as impaired fasting glucose (IFG, fasting plasma glucose (FPG) is between 6.1 to 6.9 mmol/L) and/or impaired glucose tolerance (IGT, 2 hour postprandial glucose (PPG) is 7.8 to 11 mmol/L). More recently, a haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) ≥ 42 but <47 mmol/mol has been suggested to indicate an increased diabetes risk. Women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) are strongly associated with insulin resistance a...

Background: Vitamin D insufficiency is very common in general population and in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (PHPT). Measurement of serum 25OHD (25hydroxy-vitamin D) is currently the best available test to assess vitamin D adequacy. However, it has a significant seasonal variation, and is difficult to define a serum 25OHD level that is sufficient for bone health, although a serum 25OHD above 50 nmol/l has been suggested.Previous studies conf...